"Man, is this getting tiring," Fen complained, half serious.
How many creatures had they killed already? He'd lost count after the first dozen or so. How many children had the beasts killed already? He didn't know. Fen leaned on his war hammer, breathing heavily. There were so many questions spinning around in his head. Was Squad B alright? What was Captain Karabell's team doing? Fen whistled slowly, hoping it would erase those ominous thoughts.
"Looks like Kirru's having fun over there," Shono mentioned in an exhausted voice.
The scaled Superior had knocked a feathered creature to the ground and was pummeling its face with all it had. Oddly enough, Kirru looked like it was enjoying it. Lily and Krun, two of its subordinates were doing their best to try and calm the Superior down. One of the apprentices, a boy holding a strange-looking sword was patiently waiting waiting to finish off the beast. After a few seconds, finally Kirru got up. The boy walked up to the creature anxiously, before swinging his weapon and stabbing it through the creature's neck. That entire battle had looked way too chaotic. But Shono recognized that sword. That boy was the one who'd informed the Captain about the second group of Aberrations. He'd also helped Shono slay a furred Gargling soon after the Captain's departure. So, he was still alive...
"What are those guys doing?" Shono muttered as he shook his head disapprovingly. "Just because their bodies are a lot sturdier than ours doesn't mean they have the right to fool around like that. We're risking our lives here, you know?"
It was Fen's first time seeing Shono get angry. No, perhaps angry wasn't the right word. Disappointed, maybe? Nevertheless, Shono's reaction had surprised him. Aberrations were a lot stronger than humans, but that also went for the ones attacking them. They needed to properly immobilize the creatures before attempting to kill them if they wanted to minimize casualties. They weren't fooling around at all. If anything, they were making sure the children wouldn't get hurt.
Fen lifted his weapon sluggishly. He'd rested enough. The instructor turned towards Shono, ready to tell him that they needed to get going. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. His lower lip trembled, and his eyebrows rose in shock. The feathered creature moving towards them was disturbingly large. Seeing an Aberration walk on all fours so leisurely was strange... to say the least. Cold sweat broke out on Fen's forehead. A beast of that size... That creature was, without a doubt, the Superior they'd been searching for. No wonder they hadn't been able to spot it. Worse yet, the creature wasn't alone. Two scaled Aberrations accompanied the Superior, their unwavering gazes fixed on the two fighters.
"Finally showing yourself, huh?" Shono said blankly, at a loss for better words.
"That thing sure took its sweet time," Fen remarked. "Maybe you're not in a hurry, but we sure as hell are. Well, let me ask you one simple question. How much do you think it'll hurt you when I stab this thing through your chest?" he said, and all his pain and weariness came out as anger.
Just as he said those words, yet another jolt of pain shot through Fen's body. The wound on his chest was starting to annoy him, but he couldn't let it distract him. Out of a sudden, the feathered Superior stood up on its hind legs, seemingly measuring its opponents. The creature's eyes widened as it released a loud, feral growl. Although he was frightened, Shono smirked. So talking things out wasn't an option. Well, it couldn't be helped. He'd gotten tired of fighting small fries anyway.
"Hurry. Ready to die?" the creature said in a distorted, almost threatening voice.
Almost immediately, a second growl escaped the Superior's throat, echoing through the air. Unconsciously, Lyra jerked her head in the direction of the sound. It seemed to have come from somewhere nearby, but she couldn't see its source. Lyra clicked her tongue, and turned her attention back to her target. She'd gotten distracted. Still, what in the world was happening over there? The soldier grabbed another arrow out of the quiver and nocked it. One of the Aberrations was menacingly walking towards her. Judging by those unnerving sounds, the trainees protecting her were fighting another Gargling. Luckily, she'd already taken out one of the creature's eyes. She just needed to get the other one and fall back. Lyra slowly pulled the arrow back. Something didn't feel right. No, she'd felt that sensation before. Lyra's expression darkened all of a sudden. With a loud noise, the bowstring snapped right in front of her, and the arrow fell bluntly to the ground. Her fingers went numb, and a pained grimace flashed across her face. The creature was closing in on her. Lyra didn't have the time to mourn the destruction of her beloved weapon. She needed to get away from there.
"Just my luck," she muttered, casting the broken bow aside. "It's not like I can just stroll back to the wagon and get a new one, either."
Lyra closed her eyes, trying to collect her thoughts. Her archery skills had made things considerably easier for Kirru and its subordinates. They'd taken out quite a few Aberrations. She'd done enough, right? Besides, she was completely useless now that she'd lost her weapon. Lyra shook her head, angry at herself. No, she couldn't run away. Those kids were still fighting for her sake. That thing coming towards her looked like a regular Aberration, too. It wasn't especially dangerous. If only she could distract it until the others took care of the Gargling, they'd have a chance to win. Lyra opened her eyes and lunged at her opponent. The quiver rattled on her back. She just needed to avoid getting killed, that was all. The Aberration was clad in scales, meaning that it moved terribly slow. It swung its arm, but Lyra dodged to the side, easily avoiding the attack. She hadn't moved around a lot, so she wasn't physically tired. Lyra regained her footing before instantly jumping back a few steps. It looked like her instincts had saved her yet again. A second Aberration was adamantly glaring at her. Covered in feathers. Too swift for her. She couldn't take on two creatures at the same time. Especially not without a weapon.
"What're you doing? That's reckless!" she heard a voice behind her shout.
Lyra turned around to see two trainees running towards her. The boy who'd encouraged her earlier was still struggling to defeat the Gargling, aided by a feathered Aberration. The girl whose scream she'd heard earlier was lying on the ground behind him, a puddle of blood under her.
"That's my line. Help them! I can manage on my own," Lyra snapped back.
"Please, have faith in your comrades, Miss Lyra," the boy replied. "I've known that guy for a long time. He's stronger than he looks."
"He's right," the tall girl added with a warm, if somewhat nervous smile as she drove her longsword into the ground.
Lyra stared at the two trainees who'd come to help her, perplexed. The girl's weapon looked like it was too big for her, but she seemed to manage. The boy, however, was holding a huge shield, larger than any she'd even seen. Was that really his weapon? But he couldn't possibly incapacitate an Aberration with that thing. Lyra let out a sight. She had no right to judge him. Other fighters had looked down on her for using a bow in the past, too. And she'd hated it.
"So, you think we can kill those guys?" Lyra asked, with a faint smirk.
"Of course we can," the girl said, beaming proudly. "You've done more than enough. Now it's our turn."
"She's right. You seem to have lost your weapon, too. Don't worry. We'll slay those two beasts in no time." The boy gave her a thumbs up before lifting his shield in front of him.
Lyra couldn't argue with that logic. She still had her arrows, but she couldn't exactly use them without a bow. She had no choice but to believe in those two. Plus, they looked strong. They were probably going to win. In spite of herself, Lyra let out a chuckle.
"Alright, I've decided. I'll help too," she said, pulling the arrows out of the quiver. "Those things aren't nearly as sturdy as a sword, but I don't think it matters at this point. We just have to stab the Aberrations. Plus, we've got them outnumbered."
The apprentices exchanged a troubled glance, but didn't object. Lyra forced another smile. She really hoped that Karabell and Commander Frederick would hurry up and kill the Ringleader.